The working people in our country began to cultivate pearls very early, and the record of this aspect was first seen in the book Wenchang Miscellanies in the Song Dynasty, which wrote: "One pearl itches. Take fake pearls today, choose bright and round ones, take slightly larger clams, soak them in clear water, wait for them to open their mouths, throw them with pearls in a hurry, change water frequently, and set the moon at night; ..... after two autumns, it will become a real pearl. " A true pearl is a pearl.
There are many descriptions of pearls in ancient literary works, such as The Book of Songs, Classic of Mountains and Seas, Erya and Zhouyi. Throughout the ages, there have been literati chanting pearls, such as "dew is like pearls, the moon is like bows" (Bai Juyi), "Why comfort loneliness with pearls" (Jiang Fei) and "Laugh again, and wish to be the treasure of pearls" (Liu Yong).
Although there is no textual research on the earliest time when pearls were used in jewelry, there are also many works reciting pearl jewelry. "The fragrance spins with the color, and the beads are connected" (inclusive); "Drunk back to the deep courtyard, singing and dancing, carving and turning, the pearl is small" (Jie Jiang). There are also descriptions of pearl jewelry in A Dream of Red Mansions. Xue Pan once asked Wang Xifeng to take off the pearl jewelry on her head and give it to her favorite goddess, Lin Daiyu.
Pearl is an ancient organic gem and a symbol of identity and wealth. In ancient times, pearls were owned by dignitaries or rich families. "A Dream of Red Mansions" describes the wealth of the Xue family in Jinling with "the grain is abundant and the snow is heavy, and pearls are as gold as iron".